If getting excited about an afternoon of making preserves, compotes and jams sounds about as fun as paper shredding, it might be time to add alcohol.
It's a patience thing: Canning and preserving take time, are too burdened by all that sanitation, boiling water, macerating, simmering and waiting. Ease up. Pull the best out of summer harvest by getting produce good and soused with alcohol preservation.
As a preserving agent, alcohol is about as perfect as it can get: High proof means no bacteria, means no botulism and way less sanitizing work. Even better, unlike cocktails, really inexpensive liquor works just fine; just peel off the price tag or hide the bottle when showing it off to friends. It's cool to have secrets if the end result is a knock out new pantry item.
Classic combinations include peaches and brandy, vodka and citrus, cherries and bourbon. Lemongrass, vanilla beans, and even watermelon rind are other good staples to try out, but they take a little longer to mature.
It’s beyond simple to make boozy preserves. General guidelines:
- Leave small fruits whole and slice larger fruits.
- As a basic guide, add two-thirds alcohol to one-third sugar.
- Add sugar/booze mix to fruit and leave for at least a month (can last up to a year). Some flavors mature better than others (like vanilla beans).
This easy labor makes all the work of serious canners look like - well - serious work.
At the end, there's a perfect little glass container that makes an Instagram pic foodies, locavores, DIY-ers and canning advocates will get all lusty-eyed about. Besides being easy and drool-inducing there are three serious benefits:
- The alcohol will take the flavor of the fruit and it's drinkable (akin to a sloe gin principle). Mix up cocktail staples and play around with the result, or just sip.
- The fruit works with cream, in a trifle, as an ice cream topper, in a pie, on top of cake and anything else the mind (and taste buds) imagine.
- Everyone and his Grandma make strawberry jam, but brandied plums are super impressive. With so little fuss and so much creativity, fruits preserved in alcohol should be the gift brought to every party.
Of course, the fruit is high in alcohol so practice mindfulness before serving these tasty nuggets.
Here in Central California, pears are just popping up. Pretty soon, they'll be ripe enough for picking. Faria Farms, a small and family owned farm tucked in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains outside of Watsonville, has eight varieties of Asian Pears - why not preserve them? Here's how:
- Prepare pears by cleaning them. Depending on the desired aesthetic in the jar, peel or chop as needed.
- Fill a large airtight jar to the neck with the pears. If they're chopped up, they'll look great in a tall bottle, but slices look really elegant in a wide-rimmed Weck jar.
- Fill the jar with brandy and ensure that the fruits are entirely covered.
- With a bar spoon, gently stir the jar. The process of stirring should release trapped air.
- Wipe the rim, make sure the jar is topped to the brim with brandy and seal the jar.
Give the flavors about a month to mature and develop. If it's possible to wait, these are perfect Thanksgiving treats that make the family table a whole lot better.
